Manuele Frau - Lucem Demonstrat Umbra

Released: September 9

In his first release on New Polar Sound Records, Italian composer Manuele Frau brings us a spanning fifteen minute composition that can be roughly divided into three parts. The first movement of this piece feels rather Kosmische with heavily post-industrial sound design. It gives a somewhat light feeling in its approach, not veering into especially dark territory but giving a sort-of spacey vibe with an odd bass line that is flanked on all sides by beeps and swooshes that lay the foundation for the next two movements. 

As it moves into the second movement, that bass line becomes heavier and the atmospherics surrounding it become more intense. It’s hard for me to determine if this is truly a second movement or if this is simply a bridge between the first and the final parts of the composition. Either way, the composition takes on a new form slowly from this point until reaching the final piece. At this end, we come to something that is far more in the realm of dark ambient that what has come before as metallic clanging and clinking takes over for any kind of percussive textures while the atmospheric noises around them become increasingly ethereal and otherworldly. It feels like a kind of inversion from where it started, as if it was turned completely inside out and only represents a vague impression of the original. Overall, it’s an intriguing composition, one that feels organic and has a natural flow through its three movements.